UFC fighter Colby Covington took to the octagon this past Saturday to square off against Rafael dos Anjos in the UFC 225 event.  After five rounds, Covington was awarded the victory by the judges and crowned the new interim welterweight champ.  The Oregon native now plans to trade gloves for cards and has announced that he will participate in next month’s WSOP Main Event in Las Vegas.

Covington isn’t exactly a novice player at the felt.  He has been on the scene since 2012 and has racked up just over $40,000 according to the Hendon Mob.  In June of that year, he finished seventh at the $110 WPT Regional in Coconut Creek, FL for $9,935 and, three months later, took first at the $100 NLHE Everglades Poker Open in Hollywood, FL.  Since then, he has continued to pick up some cash here and there, and this year he has three money finishes – two at Seminole Hard Rock and one at the Lucky Hearts Poker Open where he placed third.

Covington told MMA News, “Hopefully I make it through like day four or five so I can make it on the ESPN broadcast.  But I’ll definitely be representing the UFC at the World Series of Poker.”

The 30-year-old fighter will now take off for Hawaii to undergo intense poker training before returning to Las Vegas for the big game.  In an interview with BJPenn.com, he said, “I want to be the first two-sport world champion in poker and fighting, and eventually pro wrestling and WWE.  I love playing Texas Hold ‘Em. I love playing tournaments and big cash games, high-stakes cash games.”